The Marauders (a HP fanfiction)

Chapter two

Rubeus Hagrid, the Game Keeper, was calling the first years as the students began exiting the train.

"Don't be shy, now. Firs' years, follow me," Hagrid called out.

All the first years started getting into boats that would take them across the lake to take them to the castle while the rest of the students got into carriages that pulled themselves.

"Do you really there's a Giant Squid down there?" Lily asked as she got into one of the boats with Severus.

She turned as Peter gasped and took a step back. He hadn't given any thought about what lived in the lake. Lily had been reading Hogwarts: A History to prepare herself, though Severus had told her thinks also.

"Gi…giant Sq…squid?" Peter asked, stuttering as he did so.

Severus was suppressing his grin at the look or terror on Peter's face.

"Lily, you shouldn't have said that," Remus said, wrapping an arm around Peter to try calming him down.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Peter," she apologized as she stepped out of the boat.

"What are you doing?" Severus asked.

Lily turned to him and said, "Peter and I will take a separate boat. You and Remus can take this one. Is that all right with you, Remus?"

"No problem," he said, knowing he wasn't going to be able to win if he tried objecting to it.

Peter began shaking violently as he sat in the next boat with Lily.

'Look at me,"Lily told Peter, taking hold of his shoulders. "Nothing's going to happen. Have you seen the size of the Game Keeper?" They both glanced over at Hagrid. "He won't let anything bad happen."

"Right," Peter said, and then he closed his eyes.

Peter kept his eyes tightly shut throughout the entire boat ride.

"You can open your eyes, now," Lily said with a soft laugh as the boat stopped.

Severus and Remus had waited for them. They then followed the rest of the first years into the castle.

"They're all yours Professor McGonagall," Hagrid told the woman standing at the foot of the stairs waiting for them.

"Thank you, Hagrid," she said.

She wore emerald robes and a tight bun covered at pointed witch's hat.

"Welcome to Hogwarts. I'll be your Transfiguration teacher here," Professor McGonagall started to say as kids began to whisper amongst each other. "Now, before we enter the Great Hall to have you all sorted, there are a few things you need to know."

The whispers then stopped.

"Your House will be like your family while you're here," Professor McGonagall continued. "Points are given to your House for your achievements and taken away for bad behavior. There are four Houses. They are Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. Now, if you would follow me."

Lily and Severus glanced over at each other as they entered the Great Hall.

"Now, when I call your name, I want you to come up here, and I'll put the Sorting Hat on your head."

Sirius looked down, knowing he was probably going to be the first to get sorted.

Sure enough, Professor McGonagall looked up from the scroll in her hands and called out, "Black, Sirius."

Sirius walked up and immediately closed his eyes as he sat on the stool, so he didn't see all the people at the Slytherin table staring at him.

"Well, this is a first," the hat said.